Native Orleanian Eric Lewis dies, asks his ashes to be scattered in Panama

Eric B. Lewis, a New Orleans native, jazz enthusiast and unsecured loan rate calculator family man, passed away on Saturday, October 11, at the age of 51.

Lewis was born on January 25, 1963 at Flint Goodridge Hospital in New Orleans, La., the birthplace of jazz. He was the sixth of eight children born to Anita and Dr. Lancelot S. Lewis Sr.

He was also the loving husband of Wendy Lewis, his wife of 20 years, who would have celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary on December 31, 2014, The couple was later baptized together at Franklin Avenue Baptist Church.

After Hurricane Katrina, Eric, Wendy and their two daughters relocated to Pearland, Texas, as they worked to renovate their home in eastern New Orleans. Despite battling cancer, Eric labored tirelessly to finish the family home and return to his New Orleans roots.

LEWIS

Eric is survived by his soulmate, Wendy Lewis; two daughters, Summer Lewis, 19, and Skyler Lewis, 17; five godchildren; his mother, Anita M. Lewis; his mother-in-law, Cathy Picou; four sisters, Shelley (Dereck) Bridgewater, Anne (Tyrone) Williams, Maria (Lance) Wyndon and Gail (Kevin) Henry; three brothers, Lancelot S. Lewis Jr., Steven Lewis and Edmund W. Lewis;; two sisters-in-law: and a host of aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, three great nieces, a great nephew, former classmates, co-workers and fri­ends.

He was preceded in death by his father, Dr. Lancelot S. Lewis Sr.; his maternal grandparents, Wil­liam and Florence Montegut Burns; and his paternal grandparents, Edmund and Josephine Le­wis from the Republic of Panama.

Eric Lewis started out his education at Corpus Christi School, after which he attended Bien­ville Elementary School payday loan treadmill before graduating from Francis W. Gregory Junior High School and John F. Kennedy Senior High School. His love for music blossomed in high school, prompting him to take on the challenge of playing the cymbals in the marching band before graduating in 1981. That love and appreciation of music continued to compel him to develop a music collection that would boggle the minds of casual music listeners and dedicated music aficionados alike.

After high school, “E,” as he was affectionately called, enrol­led at the University of New Orleans where he studied Sociology and crossed the Burn­ing Sands into the brotherhood of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. He later became a Life Member of the historically Black fraternity and reveled in donning the fraternity’s crimson and cream colors and paraphernalia to unsecured pool loans florida celebrate his pride and love for the brotherhood.

A memorial service was held for Eric B. Lewis on Friday morning, October 17, followed by a repast at the UNO Alumni Center. His final wish was to have his ashes scattered through­out his father’s birthplace, the Republic of Panama. And so he shall.

Waiting at the Pearly Gates for him was his “ace,” Dr. Lancelot Lewis, his father, as well as his pops’ best friends Mr. Raymond “Moose” Rousseau and Mr. Gerson Ferrier. Also there to greet him was his nephew Corey Trepagnier, his grandparents and all those who moved on to the Village of the Ancestors before him.

This article originally published in the October 27, 2014 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.